Times Square Hotel/Theater Project Turning to $300M In EB-5 Money

Maefield Development is seeking $300M in EB-5 money to finance its repositioning of 1568 Broadway. The plan includes raising the Palace Theater by 29 feet.

The project's total cost will come to an estimated $2B, according to The Real Deal. The news that another major development project will use EB-5 comes as securing financing from traditional lenders is becoming an increasingly tall order.

The site includes the DoubleTree Guest Suites Times Square Hotel, for which the Indianapolis-based firm picked up the leasehold for last year for $540M.

That deal worked out to $1.15M per key. Plans for the redevelopment, which Maefield is doing in a partnership with the Nederlander Organization, one of the primary owners of Broadway theaters, includes revamping the hotel, a new retail and entertainment space, and a large LED screen of the type that’s become synonymous with Times Square.

The Times Square bowtie’s retail space has recently seen a shift toward experience-driven concepts with the signing of a 59k SF spread for Times Square Attractions Live and the NFL and Cirque du Soleil’s 40k SF lease for a new entertainment concept. [TRD]